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Putin Gay Adoption Ban Signed Into Law

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed an overseas gay adoption ban into law.

Putin made it clear last March that he would approve the legislation after as soon as it was voted on by the country’s parliament. Now signed, the new law prohibits gay couples in foreign countries where gay marriage is legal from adopting Russian children (presumably orphans in many instances). It also similarly rules out any such adoptions by single persons or unmarried couples irrespective of sexual orientation in countries where same-sex marriage has been legalized. The new law is said to be a direct response to the legalization of gay marriage in several European nations.

According to government officials in Russia, “the measure is aimed at guaranteeing a harmonious and full upbringing for children in adoptive families,” AFP reports.

Putin made headlines late last year by imposing a ban on Americans adopting Russian children. Apparently this was in retaliation for the US Congress passing the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012, which implements visa and banking restrictions on Russian officials in connection with human rights abuses, particularly those implicated in the prison death of Russian lawyer and accountant Magnitsky.

Responding to the enactment of the adoption ban, gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev said that “I think it will lead to an increase in corruption in the (adoption) process, but many foreigners, including homosexuals, will still be able to adopt Russian children in the future,” according to Reuters.

A former KGB officer, Vladimir Putin has been the most powerful politician in Russia for over a decade. He was president of Russia from 2000 to 2008 and prime minister from 2009 to 20012. Although the results were disputed by opposition candidates, he was elected to a third presidential term in March 2012 and will serve for six years under changes made to Russian law.

What do you think of Putin’s new law that bans overseas adoptions of Russian children in any country where same-sex marriage has been recognized?